All things being equal, the actual financial position of the state-owned Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) would be made known this week, Alex Kofi Mould, Chief Executive Officer of the National Petroleum Authority (NPA) has revealed. According to him, the management of TOR and its shareholder, Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning, are reconciling their accounts to come out with the true state of TOR’s debt which has become a subject of debate for sometime now between the current NDC government and the past NPP administration. Government officials have given varied figures for the total liabilities of the state-owned refinery but Mr. Mould, who has expressed the need to run the oil refinery as a true business entity, said TOR’s debt according to a 2008 audited financial statement, is GH¢1.488 billion. TOR which refines about 45,000 oil barrels a day, contributes about 10 percent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the country, and it is by far the biggest revenue earner for the country. But the previous government’s interference in the pricing of petroleum products by refusing to allow for full cost recovery because of political expedience has made it debt-ridden. “TOR is the biggest company in Ghana and what you do to a company with such strategic importance is that you deploy the best human resources and ensure it is run very well,” said Mr. Mould. The state oil refinery has incurred losses due to lack of implementation of full cost recovery, resulting in under-recoveries. Mr. Mould emphasized the need to implement the full cost recovery policy initiated somewhere in 2003 to ensure that under-recoveries are not encountered. Oil prices have gone beyond the $100 per barrel mark and even traded at $100.48 per barrel on the international market Monday. Mr. Mould stressed that his outfit will monitor prices on the world market for two pricing periods- that is two fortnights or one month- and that if there is the need to increase fuel prices, it would advise Government accordingly. Ghana and all West African countries consume Brent Crude which has one of the highest prices among the various types of oil. The current pump price is based on the world market price of between $90 and $95. Fuel prices shot up 30 percent at the beginning of this year. Petrol, which previously sold at GH¢5 per gallon, went up to GH¢6.80 per gallon while diesel or gas oil went for GH¢7.00 a gallon. NPA, which was established to regulate the petroleum downstream industry objectives, is to ensure full cost recovery of all services in the petroleum downstream industry and ensure availability of consistent quality of products among others. Its responsibilities are to monitor the ceilings on the price of petroleum products in accordance with a prescribed petroleum pricing formula, promote competition and protect consumers among others. Source: Charles Nixon Yeboah/Business Guide/Ghana